Be An Employer With Empathy: Steps To Building An Inclusive Workplace

Prioritise inclusion and value differences for a more productive, happier team.

21 Jun 2024 Articles Work-life harmony Trending Best practices

What does it mean to be an inclusive employer amidst growing diversity in the workplace? Beyond being fair in employment practices, it is also about using values such as empathy, altruism and compassion1 to shape an inclusive workplace culture where everyone feels that they belong.

Creating an inclusive organisation leads to a winning workplace, one where employees are more engaged and produce better work, according to studies from McKinsey2.

There are also attractive business benefits to having a diverse workforce, which tend to outperform a homogenous workforce. A Boston Consulting Group study3 found that companies with more diverse management teams have 19 per cent higher revenues due to greater innovation.

Another key outcome of an inclusive culture, which is ultimately a conducive environment to grow the company, is harmony – as everyone pulls in the same direction.

Here are three ways for employers to build an inclusive workplace with empathy:

1. VALUE DIFFERENCES

Diversity in the workplace may bring differences, but it should be a boon rather than a bane. Having employees with a variety of experiences, backgrounds or perspectives prevent groupthink and provide better solutions to issues.

Valuing differences also means showing empathy in considering the person as a whole, and not just viewing them as mere manpower to achieve business results.

For example, do we judge people by the way they speak? Do we view them as poor performers simply because they are unable to speak the same corporate lingo, or are we able to accept and embrace the cultural differences reflected in the way they communicate arising from a diverse workforce?

Employees  who do not feel the need to “code switch” at work, using diction or references they would not normally use, are more comfortable offering opinions based on their experiences.

In fact, organisations that valued each person’s unique and individual strengths had the most productive workplaces, according to Gallup4.  When employees feel their unique voices are heard, they become more confident in their contributions. 

2. BE SENSITIVE AND PROACTIVE 

As an employer with empathy, you can help your staff feel included by identifying exclusionary behaviour and being proactive in addressing it. 

It may not be easy to spot these individual incidents, but some company-wide occurrences require closer attention: Are your events inclusive when it comes to meals or entertainment? Is there a tendency to use non-English languages at the workplace that may exclude certain employees from the conversation?

Of course, not all practices that may exclude some employees are considered discriminatory. For example, a “Bring a Child to Work Day” can be enjoyed by all at the office, whether one has children or not. Employers can encourage employees to bring their nephews, nieces or grandchildren to participate in the event as well.

In the case of new foreign employees, employers could share more about Singapore’s socio-cultural norms to help them assimilate better.

Always be proactive in hearing from employees’ experiences and getting feedback on how you can do better to address your blind spots.

3. FORGE BONDS

Empathy should emanate through the organisation. Employees should also make a concerted and collective effort to foster a deep and authentic sense of inclusion.
 
Employers can organise bonding activities, which can include corporate social responsibility initiatives. This allows employees to contribute to a common good together, while building deeper and more authentic relationships with one another. Activities can also promote cross-cultural understanding and competencies, and bridge generation gaps and differences.
 
An example is to assign local colleagues as buddies to foreign employees, helping to settle them in and strengthen bonds between the two groups. Of course, there are concerns about these activities being “cheesy”5 and even patronising. This is why the bases of trust and sense of belonging should first be created so that such activities have meaning.
 
Empathy is a crucial ingredient at the workplace, resulting in a more inclusive culture with better-engaged employees. Be proactive in addressing gaps that may undermine inclusion efforts, and prevent exclusionary practices from becoming entrenched as organisational culture.
 
Assess how inclusive your workplace culture is with the Fair and Progressive Employment Index (FPEI), a free online self-assessment tool that allows employers to evaluate organisational workplace culture and benchmark their practices against industry peers. The FPEI offers insights and recommendations on how employers can leverage their workforce for better business and employee results.

 

References

[1] Expert Humans: Critical Leadership Skills for a Disrupted World by Michael Jenkins (2021). https://www.peoplemattersglobal.com/blog/sports-books-movies/expert-humans-critical-leadership-skills-for-a-disrupted-world-by-michael-jenkins-29251
[2] Understanding organizational barriers to a more inclusive workplace survey (2020). https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/understanding-organizational-barriers-to-a-more-inclusive-workplace
[3] How Diverse Leadership Teams Boost Innovation (2018). https://www.bcg.com/en-us/publications/2018/how-diverse-leadership-teams-boost-innovation
[4] 3 Requirements for a Diverse and Inclusive Culture (2018). https://www.gallup.com/workplace/242138/requirements-diverse-inclusive-culture.aspx
[5] How HR can boost morale – without being cheesy (2021). https://www.hcamag.com/asia/specialisation/employee-engagement/how-hr-can-boost-morale-without-being-cheesy/312089

 

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